Carol Thatcher has insisted she does not regret referring to a black
tennis player as a "golliwog" - despite her sacking from a BBC
television show.

Ms Thatcher, 55, appearing on BBC One's Andrew Marr Show, defended her off-air use of the word. She said the current obsession with political correctness needed to be addressed with common sense. It was her first appearance on the BBC since she was sacked from The One Show in February.

Asked whether she regretted using the word "golliwog", Ms Thatcher
said: "No, because I used it in a context which wasn't actually
appreciated at the time."

She went on: "The point
about the mail was today's obsession about political correctness - and
that remains a topic that has to be addressed and some common sense
injected to it."

Ms Thatcher added she has received
many letters of support: "My store of golliwog fridge magnets has
actually now gone up because people have sent them to me."

Common courtesy

But she was criticised by fellow guest, former Labour leader Neil Kinnock.

He said: "The one thing that struck me when I heard you had used that word - and stuck by the word - is astonishment.

"I
did not think someone like you would consciously use the word. Not
because of political correctness - but merely out of common courtesy."

The
BBC has previously defended its decision to drop Baroness Thatcher's
daughter from The One Show over the remark, saying she was given "ample
opportunity to apologise".

More than 3,000 people complained about the decision to sack Ms Thatcher.

During
the ensuing controversy she was backed by Mayor of London Boris Johnson
and pop star Will Young - although Communities Secretary Hazel Blears
supported the BBC's action.